Three Years Later - Oneshot
by MelodiousAlchemist
Summary: Three years have passed since the situation with Shizuka Kaori, and all seems to be going well. But, when Shizuka seems to have come down with some unknown illness, the whole situation may turn out to be more good than bad. Rated T for a few curse words


Three years had passed since the events that involved Shizuka Kaori had taken place. There had been no sign of Takamagahara since then, and all had been quiet. All situations since then had been observed by the she-vampire, Rachel, and everything was as it should be. Many people of Kagutsuchi went about their daily lives, working for what they earned, and earning what they had worked for.

The streets were busy, as they always were, and one could think that the city itself never slept. Children played gaily on the streets, adults walked about to get to their destinations, and everything resembled one's idea of "perfect." The NOL building still stood atop of the city, and watched over all who inhabited it. Within those walls, many guard personnel patrolled the parameters, and many other higher ranking members were getting ready to depart for whatever mission they had been sent on at the time.

Murmurs among the members had been passed throughout the whole building, and now there was a seemingly correct rumor floating around the halls. "_Hey, I heard that Kaori girl is with the Captain of the Intelligence Department now_." "_I heard that too! I also heard they have been together for quite some time now_." "_Really? I heard the same thing! I never pictured the captain having someone for himself_!" "_Hey look, there she is_…" The girl heard the conversation between the two men, and she slowly glanced over at them as she walked past.

The both of them slowly strut up to her, and the girl did her best to avoid contact with them. "Hey, Shizuka. I heard you and the Captain have been hanging around each other a bit…" one of the men said as a slight grin formed on his lips. Shizuka looked away from him and kept walking, only to be confronted by the other man walking beside her. "So? Is it true? Huh? Have you become his little plaything?" Shizuka looked away again, her face becoming flushed with embarrassment. The two men were silent for a moment as she turned to walk down the hallway, and she was suddenly forced against the wall.

"H-hey! Get the hell off of me…!" Shizuka exclaimed as she attempted to free herself from their grasp. Both men had wide grins on their faces, and one moved rather close to hers. "I guess it is true then… you've become the Captain's personal toy! I never pictured you as someone who would so eagerly give themselves up like that…" he said quietly as he took a hold of her cheeks with his thumb and index finger.

"Hey, does that mean she'll give herself up to anyone?" the other man asked as he ran his finger down her neck. Shizuka glared at him, and nipped at his finger. "Don't touch me…" she growled heinously. "Oh, I'm so scared. Go on, do that again. It turns me on…" Shizuka bared her teeth at him, only to have her head turned back towards the other man once again. "You're not even resisting that much… so you really are nothing more than a…" "Excuse me, gentlemen…"

All eyes immediately fell upon the green-haired man walking towards them slowly, and he had a slight smile upon his face. "It seems that I've walked into a rather intriguing conversation, haven't I?" he continued as grew nearer to the trio. The two men couldn't find their words, and in nothing more than a split second, both of them were thrown against the opposite wall, and had Hazama's hands wrapped around each of their necks.

"So, go on. Feel free to finish that sentence. What were you about to call her…?" Hazama asked quietly as he stared at them, his eyes full of murderous intent. When he received no answer, his grip tightened on their necks, and they both began gasping for air. "I'll give you one more chance, or both you and your acquaintance will die. Now, what were you going to call her?" he asked, an evil tone invading his voice.

The one who had been mocking Shizuka earlier stared at him, and released a very raspy, "…slut…" Hazama glared at him, and then dropped both men onto the floor. "Get your sorry asses out of here. And, if I ever see you doing what you were about to do to Shizuka again…" He reached into his pocket and pulled out one of his butterfly knives, the blade glinting in the light. "This will be shoved inside your throat, and I shall open it. After I open the blade, I will slowly drag my hand down your miserable excuse of a body, tearing you in half," he continued as a sadistic smile crossed his lips.

The two men stared at him for a moment and then shot straight up, turning tail and vanishing down the other end of the hall. Hazama gave a quiet sigh, and then turned his attention to Shizuka. "Hey, are you alright? They didn't hurt you, did they?" he asked as he immediately went to her side. Shizuka shook her head, but didn't look at him. "They… they called me a slut…" "Hey, they don't know you. They have no idea who you are, and they're just a bunch of idiotic men. Shizuka, you're not like that. Don't let it affect you like this…" Hazama replied as he grabbed her chin gently and turned her so she looked at him.

Shizuka looked at him for a moment, and then gave him a gentle smile. "Yes… you're right. Thank you…" she replied as she placed a soft kiss upon his cheek. Hazama nodded, and placed his knife back inside of his pocket. "Come with me… I think we should take a walk," he said as he tilted his head towards the entrance of the building. Shizuka nodded, and very softly placed his hand inside of hers.

They padded down the hallway together, and then exited the building, Hazama giving a murderous glare at the men as they walked past them. "Don't you worry, Shizuka. No one will hurt you as long as I'm around, okay?" Shizuka smiled happily as she looked up at him and nodded. "Of course! And, I wanted to thank you for that," she replied quietly. Hazama shook his head. "No, you don't need to thank me, Shizuka. I just want to protect you, that's all…" he replied.

Shizuka giggled quietly, and tightened her grip on his hand just by a little bit. She then noticed a few children running along the street and kicking a ball about between each other. She sighed softly, and Hazama glanced down at her. "Is something the matter?" Shizuka snapped back into reality, and looked back up at him. "O-oh! No, nothing is wrong. I just… I think little ones like them are so adorable…" she replied as she looked back at the children.

Hazama did the same, and he gave a quiet sigh. "Why have you taken an interest all of a sudden, hmm?" Shizuka looked down, and then shook her head. "No reason! I just… I've always thought little ones like them are adorable… and little Carl, God, every time he came around it felt like he was mine in a way… I loved it…" Hazama raised his eyebrow, and gave a quiet scoff of amusement. "You women…"

Shizuka looked at him, her lips pursed in a small pout. "Hey… what's that supposed to mean?" she asked quietly. Hazama shook his head, and looked the opposite direction. Shizuka looked at him for a moment, and then gave a quiet sigh. "O-okay…" All was quiet for a moment, and then Hazama glanced down at her. "That was quite the mood change… and it was quite quickly too…"

Shizuka quickly looked up at him, and gave a nervous laugh. "What are you talking about? I'm fine!" she exclaimed as she looked around. "Hey! I'm in the mood for Chinese… come on!" she said quickly as she took her leave towards one of the restaurants in town. Hazama raised his eyebrow, a bit of a concerned look on his face. "Hmm… I wonder what's going on with her…"

A while later, Shizuka was reclining in her chair inside of her office, a small frown on her face. "_I've been feeling so out of it lately, and it's out of nowhere too. Maybe I'm getting sick_," she thought as she touched her forehead. "_My head hurts… and it won't stop_," she continued as she slowly closed her eyes. Not a split second later, she opened them to the sound of her office door slamming against her wall. "Shizuka! Your fantastic, one-of-a-kind best friend is here to say hello!" Zara called in a sing-songy tone as she nearly skipped into her office. Shizuka groaned and rubbed her temples with her index finger and thumb. "What is it Zara…? I'm really not in the mood for anything right now…" she muttered quietly.

This immediately got Zara's attention, and she ran to Shizuka's side. "What's wrong? What hurts? Can you see? Are you bleeding externally or internally? What the hell is wrong?" Shizuka glared at her, and then leaned back in her chair again. "My head hurts. And you yelling in my ear doesn't make it any better…" Zara blinked and slowly folded her arms across her chest. "This is very unusual. Even if you're not feeling good, you're always trying to be peppy and happy, Shizzy. This must be serious…" she said as she gently placed her hand upon Shizuka's forehead. "Hmm… you don't feel warm…"

Shizuka sat there for a moment and didn't move, and then slowly opened her eyes to look at the female standing beside her. "Well… you seemed like you had something to tell me… what is it?" she asked softly. Zara smiled happily and a small blush crossed her face. "Well, remember that waiter that I've been seeing every now and then? Well, he asked me out on another date tonight!" she exclaimed giddily. Shizuka gave a small smile, and then closed her eyes again. "That's good… very good… I'm happy for you Zara," she replied.

Shizuka then immediately stood up, and had to take a firm hold on her desk to keep herself from toppling over. "Ugh… I stood up too quickly… but I think I'm going to go see Ms. Litchi. Perhaps she can figure out what's up with me," she said as she slowly padded out of her office and down the hallway. Zara watched her go, and placed her hand upon her hip. "I wonder what's going on with her…"

Shizuka was now sitting on one of Litchi's medical beds, and the doctor was taking several tests on her. "Shizuka, I'm going to ask you a few questions now, okay?" Litchi said as she reached beside her and took a clipboard off the table. Shizuka gave a small nod, and Litchi began with her multitude of questions. When she had finished, she gently placed her hand upon Shizuka's head. "Wait here, I'll be right back okay?" she said as she walked out of the room and shut the door behind her.

Once she was outside of the room, she gave a small sigh. "Ms. Litchi? Is something wrong with Shizuka?" Linhua asked as she gave her a concerned look. Litchi didn't reply for a moment, and then held out the medical information she had received from Shizuka. Linhua took the information and scanned over it, and then quickly looked up at Litchi. "Are you meaning to tell me she's…?" Litchi nodded, and then glanced over her shoulder at the closed door. "Well… what are we going to tell her?" Litchi shook her head, and gave Linhua a stern look. "We aren't going to tell her anything. I'm going to tell her."

Shizuka slowly opened the door to where she could look through a small crack in the door, and noticed Litchi and her assistant talking. She heard Linhua ask her something, and then she saw Litchi hold up three fingers. This earned a surprised look from Linhua, and they began exchanging words once again. She then gasped as she saw Litchi glance over her shoulder at the door, and she sighed as she opened it all the way. "H-hey Litchi… I was just wondering what was going on. You've been taking quite a while…" Litchi looked at her for a moment, and then walked to her side. "Shizuka, there's something I need to tell you."

"Excuse me, but you're Shizuka's friend, no?" Zara turned around only to see Hazama walking towards her. "Oh! Yeah, that's me. Did you need something, Sir?" she asked as she bowed at her waist to show her respect. Hazama looked at her, and then fixed his hat upon his head. "Yes, have you seen Shizuka anywhere? I've been looking for her and yet I've seen no sign of her." Zara thought for a moment, and then smiled. "Oh yeah! She wasn't feeling very well, so she went to see Dr. Litchi in Orient Town!" she replied. "Orient Town? Very well. Thank you, Ms…" "It's Zara," Zara replied quietly. "Ms. Zara. Thank you," Hazama replied as he walked past her towards the entrance to the building.

He stopped when he saw Shizuka walking coming towards him, and she gave him a wave of her hand. "Shizuka, don't vanish like that… what have I told you about just up and leaving like that?" Hazama scolded as he walked beside her. Shizuka gave a quiet sigh, and then glanced away. "Sorry… I just wasn't feeling well, geez…" she muttered as she walked past him. This reaction earned a small look of shock from Hazama, and he watched her walk down the hallway. "Whoa… what the hell was that?" Zara asked as she padded beside Hazama. "I'm not entirely sure, but now it has my interest. I need to find out what's wrong with her. Tell her to meet me in my office, please," he said as he walked down the hallway towards his office.

Zara nodded and followed Shizuka to her room, only to see her sitting in her chair with her eyes closed. "H-hey Shizzy… are you okay?" Zara asked quietly as she walked in front of her desk. "Mhm…" was the only response she got. Zara gave a small sigh, and then walked beside her. "Hey, come on. What's going on? You're never upset at the captain, so… what's going on?" she asked as she gently touched her cheek. "Well… Zara… if I tell you, you have to promise not to say anything to anyone, especially Hazama, okay?" Shizuka replied as she glanced over at her. Zara nodded, and made an X over her heart. "I promise." Shizuka looked at her, and a small smile crossed her face.

Shizuka slowly opened the door to Hazama's office and walked inside, closing it with a small click behind her. "Hey," she said as she walked in front of his desk. Hazama looked at her, and then quickly rose to his feet. "Shizuka… I wanted to talk to you about…" Shizuka shook her head and pressed her index finger gently against his lips. "I know, I know. And, I'm really sorry about how I acted. You know I don't normally act like that, and I wanted to apologize to you," she replied softly. "So, tonight, we're going to go somewhere, okay? Meet me in Orient Town at eight tonight, alright? Right outside of Ms. Litchi's clinic. We're gonna go to the New Year's Festival."

Hazama looked at her for a moment, and then gave a small nod. "Alright, whatever you'd like," he replied quietly. Shizuka gave him a gentle smile, and the turned around and walked out of his office.

The time was now 8:34, according to the clock on one of the buildings the pair passed by as they walked along. Many different people walked in all directions, heading to different game and food booths, and Shizuka noticed lots of differently designed lanterns hanging above them. "Isn't the festival beautiful?" she breathed in awe. Hazama glanced around, and then looked down at her. "I suppose… there's… quite a bit of people here, don't you think?"

Shizuka giggled, and then gently clung to his arm. "Well, I don't mind. And, don't worry about them okay? I brought you here so we could spend time together. And in a few hours, I'm going to take you somewhere even better than this to watch the fireworks, okay?" she replied as she leaned up and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek. She heard him give a small sigh, and he nodded. "Alright, just try not to kill my wallet, okay?" Shizuka giggled and nodded as she began making her way through the crowd, pulling Hazama along with her.

The time was now 11: 55, and the pair had moved from the crowded streets to above the town, taking their place on one of the overhanging rock formations. Shizuka's legs dangled over the edge and swung back and forth in a steady rhythm, and she gave Hazama a small smile as she glanced over at him. "See? You had fun, I know you did." Hazama gave a quiet scoff of amusement in reply, and he stared off somewhere in the distance. "I suppose I did. I still think there were too many people for my taste. Although, I did find it interesting what kinds of things they did during this celebration." Shizuka tilted her head a bit, and asked in reply, "so, you're telling me you've never been to a New Year's Festival?"

Hazama nodded, and this earned a quiet laugh from Shizuka. "What? What is it?" he asked as he glanced over at her. "N-nothing… I just think it's funny you've never been to a single one of these festivals…" Right as she finished her sentence, the pitch black sky brightened with a shower of colors, and Shizuka smiled happily. "The fireworks are starting!" she exclaimed as she eagerly watched more colorful flashes light up the sky. Hazama continued to watch her for a moment, and a slight hint of a smile crossed his lips.

All was silent, aside from the loud explosions of the fireworks, and then Shizuka broke the silence. "Hey, Hazama…" He looked back over at her once again, and he saw her giving a gentle smile as she gazed off into the colors of the fireworks. "I want you to do something for me. Pick two names… one boy name, and one girl name. Just, find the one that you like the most, and tell me what it is…"

This seemed to confuse him, seeing as how he didn't response for a few moments. "Well, if I had to pick a name for someone, I suppose they would be Kiyoko or Yoshirou…" he replied as he raised his eyebrow. "Why on earth are you asking me a question like that, Shizuka?" Shizuka continued to stare off into the colors of the fireworks, and she gave a soft sigh. "I like those names, Hazama. I also like the meanings behind them," she replied. She then slowly rose to her feet, and looked down at her partner. "Do you want to know why I asked that question to you?"

Hazama nodded as he rose to his feet as well, and Shizuka's smile widened. She held up three fingers, and that earned no reply whatsoever from Hazama. "Three? What does that even mean?" he asked in utter confusion. Shizuka sighed quietly, and folded her arms across her chest. "Well, let's just say that I asked you that question six months ahead of time," she replied softly as she turned around and began walking off. Hazama stood in utter silence, and then what she said finally hit him.

"_**Wait a minute… oh, holy shit. Shizuka! Shizuka, hold on a second! You're kidding me, right? Right? Come on, tell me you're kidding**_!"


End file.
